Sleep Health
Published March 7, 2022
9 min6 Ways to Donate Mattress
Advancing technologies and better materials have made modern mattresses ultra-comfortable and sublime to sleep on. Given that, it's natural that many desire to level up with a better mattress. However
Table of contents
Can You Donate a Mattress?6 Ways for Mattress DonationWhat if You Can’t Donate a Mattress?Final WordsFrequently Asked Questions
Advancing technologies and better materials have made modern mattresses ultra-comfortable and sublime to sleep on. Given that, it's natural that many desire to level up with a better mattress. However, one of the first challenges with upgrading is what to do with the old mattress. One plausible way to get rid of it is to donate a mattress. They would not only be saved from ending up in landfills but would also prove helpful to someone else. Here, we tell you all about how to donate a mattress.
Can You Donate a Mattress?
You can seriously think about mattress donation if your old one is lightly used or has some normal wear and tear. You can donate a mattress to charity with the help of those manufacturers and organizations who play a key role in the process.Is Your Mattress Good Enough to Donate?
Not all mattresses can be donated. Foremost, you need to thoroughly inspect and even execute some repair work to ascertain whether you can donate your used mattress. For donation:- The mattress should not have significant defects like holes, rips, tears, etc. You can also inspect and see if they are in miniature forms and can be repaired to look new.
- It should have working springs with functional cushioning having no extreme sags. The mattress must also be odor-free.
- Sometimes, the mattress is infected with molds or bed bugs. Try eliminating them with homemade or commercial bed bug spray. Always remember to clean any stains caused by its chemicals. If the infection is wiped out, you can consider donating it. Otherwise, you would need to resort to other mattress removal options.
- If you have a memory foam mattress, inspect for its loss of structure and texture. Any damage or breakdown would signify moisture damage or overexposure to chemicals, making it ineligible for donations.
- Finally, check on the laws of mattress donation to find out if your mattress condition qualifies for donation. The laws vary from state to state and even from one charity organization to another.
6 Ways for Mattress Donation
Once you have verified that your mattress is eligible for donation, you might ponder, ‘where can I donate a mattress?’. Here are a few suggestions that most often work.Large Organizations
Thankfully, several national and international organizations and charitable organizations exist who takes used mattress. They only need the mattress to qualify after passing through their respective checklists. A few of them can also offer you a free mattress pickup. A few noteworthy organizations include:- Salvation Army
- Habitat for Humanity International (HFHI)
- Furniture Bank Association of America (FBA)
- FreeCycle
Local Charities
Apart from national banks and charitable organizations, you can also explore local charities as they prove highly convenient for free mattress disposal. These organizations include:- Shelter homes for the poor, orphaned, homeless, abused women, etc. Most of them are in dire need of resources. So they gratefully accept used mattresses and any other items that you can spare. Sometimes, they even accept mattresses that big organizations reject.
- Churches and small furniture places are also excellent choices to donate used mattress. Moreover, they have far looser rules for it than reputed bodies.
Local Furniture Banks
Similar to FBA, you can find several local furniture banks. Presently, they are spread all over the U.S, Europe, and even Australia. They can be easily located through telephone directories, yellow pages, local advertisements, or even through the local search engine. With a much more relaxed benchmark for used mattress acceptance, you can easily donate mattresses with minimal transportation costs. They, in turn, give it to needy individuals or charitable organizations.Social Platforms
The power of social media platforms just cannot be overestimated. In this case, too, they might prove to be your best bet while looking for places to donate a mattress. Few noteworthy platforms include:- Craigslist
- Letgo
- Instagram, etc.
Classified Advertisements Sites
There are plenty of classified advertising sites available online where you can place an advertisement for mattress donation without any cost. Craigslist and Facebook Marketplace rule the niche, and you get a maximum response here. Other noteworthy sites include online Bedtimes magazine, junk king .com, etc.Thrift Shops
Thrift shops are another excellent place to donate mattresses. These shops take all your junk and sell it to those who need it at extremely nominal pricing. They even donate stuff to needy people who cannot pay. A few excellent and reputed thrift shops to donate to are AMVETS Thrift Stores, Goodwill, and Habitat for Humanity.What if You Can’t Donate a Mattress?
We now know where to donate a mattress. But what to do with a used mattress if it is so worn down that it cannot be donated? In that case, you can take either of these two options for safe mattress removal without filling the landfills.1. Mattress Recycling
The second-best option for donating a mattress is recycling it. The process is easy, and it can also recycle tough materials like memory foam. About 80-90% of the mattress materials get effectively recycled.For recycling, you can either recycle it yourself or trace any recycling facility near you. A few of these options include:- Earth 911
- Bye-Bye Mattress
- Mattress Disposal
- City Recycling Programs
